The invention relates generally to landscaping apparatuses and to methods that provide for a safety measure associated with the use of power landscaping devices. More specifically, the invention relates to the use of power landscaping devices with landscaping apparatuses having a flexible screen to block high velocity debris hurled by the landscaping device from traveling through the screen, thereby protecting bystanders and property from such debris.
Numerous individuals are treated in hospital emergency rooms for injuries relating to various lawn and garden devices annually. Riding lawnmowers and garden tractors, alone, account for the injury and/or death of tens of thousands individuals each year. In addition, landscaping injuries can arise through a number of other routes as well. In addition, almost 40% of all eye injuries happen while people doing yard work. As a result, Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), a part of the United States Department of Labor has come up with a number of standards relating to landscape and horticultural services to ensure safe and healthful working conditions. Exemplary OSHA standards relating to landscaping practices include, e.g., provisions directed to personal protective equipment such as head protection, eye and face protection, hearing protection hazard communication, and hand and portable powered tools, other hand-held equipment.
In addition, Section 5(a) of the OSH Act (29 USC §654), often referred to as the General Duty Clause, requires employers to “furnish to each of his employees employment and a place of employment which are free from recognized hazards that are causing or are likely to cause death or serious physical harm to his employees.” This section may be used to cite hazards for which there are no specific standards, such as ergonomics associated with gardening devices and apparatuses. There are no OSHA standards for protecting passersby and bystanders.
A string trimmer is a powered handheld landscaping device that uses a flexible monofilament line instead of a metallic blade for cutting grass and other plants near objects. String trimmers typically include a cutting head at the end of a long shaft with a handle or handles and sometimes a shoulder strap. String trimmers may be powered by an internal combustion engine or have an electric motor in the cutting head.
In use, the head of string trimmers spins a monofilament line at a high rate of speed to cut plant matter. A string trimmer works on the principle that centrifugal force resulting from spinning the head of a string trimmer can increase the effective stiffness of the line extending from the head. The faster the head turns, the stiffer the line. Even nylon lines having a round cross-sectional area is able to cut grass and slight, woody plants quite well. Some monofilament lines, designed for more powerful cutters, have an extruded shape—like a star—that enhances the cutting ability of the line. As a result, professional grade string trimmers are sometimes used to cut quite large woody plants such as small shrubs.
String trimmers have become popular tools for trimming grass and weed areas that cannot be reached by a lawn mower. Owners of trimmers also use them to edge vertically, or at some lesser angle than vertical, the edges of curbs, sidewalks and driveways and mulched beds. String trimmers are often used near buildings and windows. Accessories for use with string trimmers include, for example, edging guides that, as described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,351,930 to Byrne et al., facilitate a consistent edge along lawns.
As with any power tool such as mowers, blowers, and rototillers, string trimmers are capable of causing injury if not used in a safe manner. Improper operation of string trimmers is hazardous because the rotating cutting string is exposed. The exposed cutting string has been known to occasionally hit the leg of the operator of the trimmer, thus causing injury to the operator's leg.
Thus, users of power tools should personal protection equipment during the tools' use. Standard protective gear for use with power tools include, e.g., hearing protection and eye protection such as safety glasses, goggles, or a face shield. Gloves are also useful to damp out vibrations. For string trimmers in particular, long trousers and sturdy shoes at a minimum should be worn. The string will at least sting if allowed to contact bare legs or feet. Additional protective apparel for the lower leg and knee is described U.S. Pat. No. 6,405,383 to Heller et al.
Guards for use with string trimmers are known in the art. For example, most string trimmers are provided with a small, relatively flat, attached string guard that encircles a rearward portion of the arc encompassed by the string. While these guards may, to some extent, prevent a user from inadvertently causing the rotating string from coming into contact with legs or feet of the user, these guards do little to prevent cuttings from being thrown toward the bystanders and passersby. In contrast, U.S. Pat. No. 6,226,876 to Ezell describes a landscaping barrier for string trimmers. The barrier is constructed for fit onto a shaft of a hand-held string trimmer. The barrier typically functions to block grass, weed and other debris generated from operation of the string trimmer from being thrown onto legs and feet of an individual using the string trimmer.
Known string-trimmer guards and debris barriers suffer from a number of drawbacks not addressed by prior art technologies. In general, guards and barriers that are attached to string trimmers do not block all debris arising from the operation of trimmers. In addition, some users of string trimmers remove such guards. Furthermore, while prior art technologies generally focus on protecting users of string trimmers, there is a need to protect bystanders and passersby from debris generate by string trimmers, particularly since professional-grade string trimmers may throw objects with uncontrolled trajectories associated with considerable force and velocity imparted by the trimmers. Since string trimmers are often used to carry out landscape maintenance for commercial property such as schools, apartment complexes, business parks, and the like, stray flying debris may lead to lawsuits and complaints filed by injured pedestrians and owners of nearby property, e.g., cars, windows, etc.
Similarly, stump grinding debris containment structures described in U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 20090008047 to Mayworm, which was never issued as a U.S. patent, also are unsuited to block debris generated from the operation of landscaping devices such as string trimmers. As an initial matter, it is well known stump grinding is not generally considered an ordinary landscaping or gardening practice. Instead, stump grinding is an infrequent arboreal activity. In addition, stump grinders operate at a lower speed of rotation than string trimmers. Typically, small stump grinders operate at a rotational speed closer at less than about 1000 revolutions per minute (RPM). In contrast, string trimmers, with their comparatively high rotational speed of approximately 7500 to about 9500 rpm, may hurl debris at greater velocities. Furthermore, stump grinders employ rigid cutting wheels or blades that are maintained in a generally fixed angle relative to the stump that they are supposed to grind. As a result, stump grinders generally do not generate high-flying debris. Instead, debris is flung in a generally uniform manner, i.e., in a generally downward direction. See, e.g., https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O8wvneMZN-0.
In contrast, landscapers of ordinary skill in the art will recognized that the angle of string rotation may vary depending how the trimmers are held. In addition, the string may bend as it strikes the ground or other solid objects, thereby providing another variable to how the trajectory of debris may be altered. As a result, string trimmers tend to hurl debris in a spray of uncontrolled trajectories. In other words, the Mayworm containment structure is not suitable for blocking a high-flying trajectory from string trimmers.
Accordingly, opportunities exist to provide solutions to the above-described shortcomings associated with known gardening and landscaping technologies.